Charles Fredrich Offerman, 1876-1931

Family history post – April 14, 2023

147 years ago today, one of my Great Grand-Uncles was born.  Charles Fredrich Offerman was born on April 14, 1876, on his parent’s farm in Otto Township in Kankakee County, Illinois.  He was the 5th known child and 5th son of Heinrich (Henry) Christian and Maria Sophia (Doscher) Offerman. At the time of his birth, his parents had left Germany and had been living in the United States for 9 years.  A few months after Charles’ birth, his father became a United States citizen.

Kankakee County map showing Otto Township

A distant cousin wrote of him… “Charles attended school for four years.  As soon as he was old enough, he was hired out as a hired hand.  He worked by the week, coming home on Sunday for clean clothes and a plug of tobacco.  He turned all his pay over to his father.  He continued to work as a hired hand until he married.”

1898 Offerman family - Charles is back row, far left

That marriage happened on October 15, 1902, in Kankakee.  His new wife was Emily Scheppler.  Charles and Emily had 7 known children, from 1903 to 1923.  The 1910 census tells us that Charles owned a farm in Otto Township.  Next door to him was his brother John (my Great Grandfather).  Three farms down the road was their brother Frank’s farm… and another four farms down was their sister Minnie’s family’s farm.

1910 census

By 1914, however, Charles had decided to get out of farming.  He moved his family into Kankakee, and into a large 2-story house (5 bedrooms, large yard and garden) at 1194 South 6th Street.  He and his brother August went into the dray business together.  Their first location was on East Water Street, on the south side of the river.  According to a distant cousin, this business prospered and they expanded into the moving and hauling business.  A new partnership was formed with Charles and August, including Charles’ brother in law, Emile Scheppler.  They moved their location to 186 North East Avenue in Kankakee (now a parking lot), and called themselves “Offerman and Company.”

1929 Kankakee City Directory

In 1918, Charles filled out a registration card for WWI.  His description was stated as… “Tall, stout, gray eyes and brown hair.”

A cousin once wrote this… “The family had a custom of getting dressed up on a Sunday afternoon and going for a ride in the big seven passenger Oldsmobile touring car.  At the end of the ride, they stopped at Kohler Drug Store on South Main Street for ice cream sodas.”

1918 7-passenger Oldsmobile... an example of what the family might have had

date unknown... wife Emily, son Victor, Victor's wife Myrtle, and Charles

Sadly, Charles died on December 28, 1931, at the age of 55.  It’s mentioned that it was a “sudden and untimely” death, however, I do not know the cause at this time.  My curiosity got the best of me, though… and I have sent off for a copy of his death certificate.  So we’ll find out when I get that back.  There are no Kankakee newspapers digitized on the newspaper website that I use, either… so I was not able to find an obituary.  I have contacted the Genealogy person at the Kankakee Library, though, in hopes that she can find one for me.

1920's downtown Kankakee

#52Ancestors, Week 15, "Solitude"

 #52Ancestors , Week 15

Theme:  "Solitude"

This was a HARD one to decide who to write about.  Other people were posting about an only child, a widow, an ancestor that was the end of the line, etc.

I had another ancestor that I was preparing to write about on this one...Elsie Gustin, who was born shortly after her father's death.  Then I decided to write about another ancestor, Richardson Mathews, who is buried in a forgotten cemetery.  I just wasn't happy with where their stories were going at this time, so I set out to find another ancestor.  I landed on John Miles, Sr.

It's not a long story... it's probably not even all that interesting.  But it's a common story that a lot of people have in their family trees.  One where people get forgotten more easily, because they weren't around very long.

John Miles, my 3rd Great Grandfather, was born about 1821 in Washington County, Virginia.  He was a son of Pascal and Susannah (Halfacre) Miles. At age 20, he married Miss Mary Jane Russell, in Washington County.  They had one child within a year, William, who was born there in Virginia.

Washington County, Virginia

Some time between 1842 and 1847, the Miles' family moved to northern Kentucky.  There, they had 2 more children, John in 1847, and Martha in 1849.  John Jr. is my 2nd Great Grandfather.  His obit states that he was born "near Covington".  The 1850 census shows the family in Gallatin County, Kentucky.  Covington is NOT in Gallatin County... so the story is unclear here.  Did they live in Covington first, then moved over to Gallatin County (only one county is in-between)?  Or was the memory wrong on where John Jr. was born?  I am sure I will never know the answer.

View of Cincinnati Ohio, from Covington Kentucky, 1850

In 1850, John Sr. is listed as a Laborer.  Laborer for what?  Farming, most likely.  However, living so close to the Ohio River, who knows?  Perhaps he had some kind of river job, working with boats or anything else river related?  

1850 CENSUS - Gallatin County, Kentucky

Another question I don't have a clear answer to, is what killed John?  Some time in 1851-52, John Sr. died.  He would have been about 30 years old.  Illness?  Work related injury?  Natural disaster?  One thing is for sure... it wasn't old age!

The reason I chose him for this "solitude" entry, is because of his death and location.  In September 1853, Mary Jane remarried.  Shortly after that, this newly formed family moved down river to Hardin County, Illinois, where they remained the rest of their lives.  Mary died there in 1888.

John is still in Gallatin County, Kentucky.  I hope he would have given his approval to what happened to his little family.  

#52 Ancestors, Week 14... Begins with a Vowel

 Week 14 of #52Ancestors already!  

This week's theme is "Begins with a Vowel"... which means you could essentially come up with ANYTHING for this.  First name, last name, town, country, occupations, etc.  But I went with an ancestor with a first name starting with a vowel.

Meet my 2nd Great Grandmother, Amke Feyke Sterrenberg...  Not a lot is known about her.  Nothing on a personal level, for sure.  No pictures... no physical descriptions, etc.  What we do know, is what can be found on paper.  And honestly, that's true for most ancestors... not just mine.

But today I focus on Amke.

We know she was born on November 6, 1840, in Oldendorp, Lower Saxony, Germany.  Her parents were Jan Peter and Fijke Willems (Bley) Sterrenberg.  Jan Peter passed away in 1856.

marriage record for Jaus Wubbena and Amke Sterrenberg, 1868

On July 5, 1868, at the age of 27, she married Jaus Wubbena (changed to Wabbena in America).  Shortly after they were married, they came to America with Amke's mother and four siblings (2 sisters and 2 brothers).  They arrived on the Bremen Ship Admiral at New York on September 7, 1868.  They had all marked their destination to be Illinois.

passenger list Bremen Ship Admiral, 1868

I don't know why, but Amke and Jaus wound up in Kansas.  They had two children... the first one was born in 1869, in Woodford County, IL.  The second was born in 1872, in Labette, Kansas.

Amke died at the age of 33, in Labette, Kansas, in 1873 (date and cause are unknown).  After her death, Jaus and the young children went back to Illinois.  They settled in Iroquois County.